We all laughed together and everyone agreed with my ideas and I agreed with everyone else’s ideas.

Life was easy and relaxed.

But after a few months, nothing changed.

I went to meetings, smiled and laughed, talked and talked, and that was it.

Life was good but it wasn’t great.

One day I looked in the mirror and didn’t recognize the person looking back at me.

I had gained 20 pounds.

I’d stopped doing the things I loved like reading and writing.

I stopped sleeping well too.

I was more successful and popular than I had ever been, yet I felt weaker in every way.

What happened?

What It Truly Means To Be Successful In Life

Success is not a popularity contest.

It’s also not measured by the size of your paycheck.

A large-scale survey by Strayer University interviewed 2,011 Americans ages 18 and up and found that 67% of those surveyed associate success with achieving personal goals; 66% cited “good relationships with friends and family”; and 60% said “loving what you do for a living.”

The reason so many people define success as achieving personal goals over being popular and well paid is because growth is more valuable than significance.

Still, too many people fall into the trap of chasing significance.

These people vie for jobs and promotions that steal their time and trap them into lives they end up hating.

They think that a more significant title and subordinates who agree blindly with them are signs of success.

In reality, things like inflated positions and forced admiration are false signs of success.

5 False Signs Of Achieving Success In Life

Setting strong goals for your life, goals that you choose and that you are passionate about, is the key to success.

Likewise, joining a power network of like-minded people is a prerequisite for true success.

The problem is that the world constantly bombards you with false ideas of success.

You’re told that popularity is a sign of success. Being relaxed and good at what you do are signs of success.

5. You’re busy.

These people brag about busyness because nothing else in their lives is worth talking about.

Busyness does not lead to achievement or fulfillment. It’s not a sign of these things either.

Just the opposite. Busyness prevents achievement and fulfillment.

If you’re so busy that you don’t have time to breath, you’re wasting your life.

True success in life is having time for yourself.

True success is being able to look ahead and see where you’re going. It’s being able to map out a long-term, strategic plan for your future.

Telling people you’re busy may be an ego boost. It might make you feel important. But it’s not making you more successful.

Busy people are pawns.

Busy people don’t make things happen. Things just happen to them.

To truly achieve success in life and get ahead, stop valuing busyness and seeing it as a sign of success. Start seeing it as the enemy. Start protecting your time and mental energy. At the same time, stop valuing agreement and admiration. Stop taking on extra responsibilities out of guilt or pride. Never settle. Never stop growing. Keep pushing yourself. When you get good at something, push even harder. Keep changing directions and taking on new challenges. This is the true way to live a successful life.

To learn more strategies for really getting ahead in life and achieving true success, and to get instant access to exclusive training videos, case studies, insider documents, and my private online network, get on the Escape Plan wait list.